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  • Arts
    • Arts & Culture
      • Film
      • Literature
      • Performing Arts
    • Asia Society Museum
      • Visit
      • Exhibitions
      • Programs
      • Collection
      • Asia Society Triennial
      • The Asia Arts and Museum Network
      • Learn
    • Asia Arts Game Changer Awards
      • About
      • Honorees
      • Ceremonies
      • Photos
      • Support
    • Creative Voices of Muslim Asia
      • Resources
      • Exhibitions
      • Videos
  • Education
    • Chinese Language Learning
    • Global Education
    • Discover Asia
    • About
  • Policy
    • Asia Society Policy Institute
      • Center for China Analysis
      • Topics
      • Countries & Regions
      • Publications
      • Initiatives
      • Watch & Listen
      • Events
      • About
      • Support Us
    • Center on U.S.-China Relations
      • Home
      • About
      • Projects
      • Events
      • Reports
      • COAL + ICE
      • ChinaFile
  • Initiatives
    • Arts
      • Arts & Museum Summit
      • Asia Arts Game Changer Awards
      • The Asia Arts & Museum Network
      • Creative Voices of Muslim Asia
      • U.S.-China Museum Summit
      • U.S.-Asia Entertainment Summit
    • Leadership
      • Asia Game Changer Awards
      • Asia 21 Next Generation Fellows
      • Diversity Leadership Initiatives
      • U.S.-China Dialogue
    • Policy
      • Asia Society Policy Institute
      • Center on U.S.-China Relations
    • Sustainability
      • Asia Society Policy Institute
      • Coal + Ice
  • Countries & Regions
    • Column One
      • Afghanistan
      • American Samoa
      • Armenia
      • Australia
      • Azerbaijan
      • Bahrain
      • Bangladesh
      • Bhutan
      • Brunei
      • Cambodia
      • Central Asia
      • China
      • Cook Islands
      • Cyprus
      • East Asia
      • East Timor
      • Fiji
      • French Polynesia
      • Georgia
      • Guam
    • Column Two
      • Hong Kong
      • India
      • Indonesia
      • Iran
      • Iraq
      • Israel
      • Japan
      • Jordan
      • Kazakhstan
      • Kiribati
      • Kuwait
      • Kyrgyzstan
      • Laos
      • Lebanon
      • Macau
      • Malaysia
      • Maldives
      • Marshall Islands
      • Micronesia
      • Mongolia
    • Column Three
      • Myanmar
      • Nauru
      • Nepal
      • New Caledonia
      • New Zealand
      • Niue
      • North Korea
      • Northern Marianas
      • Oceania
      • Oman
      • Pakistan
      • Palau
      • Palestine
      • Papua New Guinea
      • Philippines
      • Qatar
      • Samoa
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Singapore
      • Solomon Islands
    • Column Four
      • South Asia
      • Southeast Asia
      • South Korea
      • Sri Lanka
      • Syria
      • Taiwan
      • Tajikistan
      • Thailand
      • Tibet
      • Tokelau
      • Tonga
      • Turkey
      • Turkmenistan
      • Tuvalu
      • United Arab Emirates
      • Uzbekistan
      • Vanuatu
      • Vietnam
      • Wallis and Futuna
      • West Asia
      • Yemen
  • Current Affairs
    • Topics
      • Business
      • Climate Change
      • Governance
    • Programming
      • Beyond the Headlines
      • Business of Asia
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  • About
    • About Asia Society
    • Inclusion & Diversity
    • Background & History
    • Board of Trustees
    • Senior Leadership
    • Global Staff
    • Global Council
    • Careers
    • Interns and Volunteers
    • Financial Statements
    • For the Media
      • Press Releases
  • Support
    • The Campaign for Asia Society
    • Corporate Engagement
      • Business Council
      • Technology and Innovation Council
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      • Rising Executives Network
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Asia Society Turns 60

Asia Society Turns 60

Celebrating Six Decades of Building Bridges

The Asia Society was founded in New York on June 28, 1956, with a mission to build bridges of understanding between the peoples of Asia and the United States, and to use culture and policy as the primary tools for its bridge-building. It was a mission born of John D. Rockefeller 3rd’s profound impression — after repeated trips to Asia in the 1940s and 1950s — that Americans understood poorly the cultures of those nations and peoples he had come to know. This year we celebrate the many ways Asia Society has executed that mission over the past six decades, from Mr. Rockefeller’s early stewardship of the institution to its global expansion, from its impactful policy work to inspiring exhibitions and performances, and from Asian and American leaders who have graced the Asia Society stage.

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Asia Society's Creation 'A Bet on the Future'

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Asia Society at 60: Past, Present, and Future (Complete)
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Asia Society at 60: Past, Present, and Future (Complete)

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Josette Sheeran on Asia Society's 60th Anniversary

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Featured Content

I.M. Pei celebrates his Asia Game Changer lifetime achievement award with his children and grandchildren. (Ellen Wallop/Asia Society)

Asia Society Honors I.M. Pei, Other 'Asia Game Changers' at United Nations

The legendary architect, film director Zhang Yimou, and eight others were recognized for their achievements.

Asia Society Leaders, Past and Present, on 60 Years

Robert Oxnam, Nicholas Platt, Vishakha Desai, Josette Sheeran, and Henrietta H. Fore discuss the organization's six decades of history.
From left: Robert Oxnam, Ronnie Chan, Josette Sheeran, Nicholas Platt, and Kevin Rudd discuss Asia Society on its 60th anniversary. (Elsa Ruiz/Asia Society)

How Asia Society's Establishment Was a 'Bet on the Future'

At a gathering celebrating the organization's 60th anniversary, former Asia Society President Robert Oxnam explained why John D. Rockefeller's vision was far from assured.
New York

Video: Performing Asia — A Legacy of Performing Arts at the Asia Society

Koma Otake, Yin Mei, and Parul Shah join us on stage to celebrate 60 years of performing arts at Asia Society.
Scene from a 1982 Asia Society documentary series on Japanese sixth graders.
Education

From Offering a 'Deeper Understanding' of Asia to Leading the Push for 'Global Competence'

60 years of Asia Society education work culminate in launch of Center for Global Education.
New York

Free Museum Admission

June 28-July 3: See exhibitions for free in celebration of our 60th anniversary.

Asia Society at 60: Letters of Congratulations

World leaders and other notable friends mark Asia Society's anniversary.
Young Afghan children carry cow dung, to be used as fuel, as they walk on the outskirts of Jalalabad. (Noorullah Shirzada/AFP/Getty Images)

How Media Has Transformed Afghanistan

Saad Mohseni describes how his country's spirited media scene has helped it recover from Taliban rule.
Students work together.

The Future Speaks Chinese

"Language is a currency for trust, and respect; it provides bricks and mortar for building an ability to explore the beauty of diverse cultures, traditions, and historical perspectives."
John D. Rockefeller 3rd (Arnold Newman)
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John D. Rockefeller 3rd on the Need for 'Mutual Understanding and Respect' Between East and West

"Asians, like Americans, are impatient for results, but not at the cost of abandoning their own traditions, dismantling thousands of years of social customs, and becoming pale copies of the efficient American stereotype."
The U.S. Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy and her husband Edwin Schlossberg view The Shinto Deity Hachiman in the Guise of a Buddhist Monk, on loan from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, at the opening of the Asia Society Museum exhibition Kamakura: Realism and Spirituality in the Sculpture of Japan, February 2016. (Elena Olivo/Asia Society)

#TBT: Shinto Deity

For "Throwback Thursday," we reach into Asia Society's archives to find a photo from the organization's 60-year history. This week: A Kamakura period Japanese sculpture on display twice at Asia Society, 56 years apart.
After graduating from Princeton University in 1929, John D. Rockefeller 3rd embarked on a global journey culminating with stops in Japan, Korea, and China. These travels—the first of over 20 subsequent trips to Asia—left a lasting impression on Rockefeller and sparked a lifelong fascination with that continent, leading to his establishment of Asia Society decades later. In this photo from his trip, Rockefeller (far left), poses on the Great Wall of China with Columbia University Professor Joseph Perkins
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John D. Rockefeller 3rd, the Asia Society, and 60 Years

To this day, this wisdom and lofty vision of Rockefeller are engrained in the very identity of Asia Society, writes Josette Sheeran.
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Asia Society Celebrates 60 Years of Building Bridges Between the U.S. and Asia

Asia Society celebrates 60th anniversary with special exhibitions and signature events across the Society’s global network.
Araya Rasdjarmrearnsook. (Video still) Village and Elsewhere:  Artemisia Gentileschi’s Judith Beheading Holofernes, Jeff Koons’ Untitled and Thai Villagers, 2011. Single-channel video with sound. Asia Society, New York: Gift of Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz, 2015.7. Image courtesy of the artist and Tyler Rollins Fine Art.

In and Out of Context: Asia Society Celebrates the Collections at 60

On view at Asia Society Museum in New York March 8, 2016 through January 8, 2017

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    Asia Society Presents: The 2016 Legacy Dinner

    15 Mar 2016
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    Featuring a distinguished panel on The Art of Collecting.

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